Top Albums of 2008 [in no particular order]

Well, well, well! Who knew Beyonce's little sister had so much talent? I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed Hadley St Dreams. There isn't one song on the album that I would skip over, and that's all I ask of any music artist. When it came to originality, talent, vision, and execution Solange definitely delivered. In my opinion Solange gave us the album of the year [sorry Kanye and Beyonce]. I will even go as far to say that Hadley St Dreams is one of the standout albums of the past decade. How about them apples?! Other must have albums of 2008 include both Kanye albums [even though Graduation was released last year, Kanye did so much with it this year that it deserves to make my list], Holly by Justin Nozuka, 19 by Adele, and Frank by Amy Winehouse which was originally released in 2003 across the pond, but was rereleased as a deluxe edition with exclusive demo tracks and rare performances on June 8th of this year.

Britney Spears "Circus"

I'm not a fan, just an objective listener; but, I'll just go ahead and say that the last album was slightly better. Yeah I said it lol. But I will say that "Blur" is that sh*t. The beat goes hard.

Kanye West ft. Tyrese "Say You Will [Remix]"

Music Spotlight: 808s & Heartbreak

Ok, so I know I'm extra late with this, but you all know I must give an album review for Kanye's 808s & Heartbreak. Well...... THIS ALBUM HAS TO BE ONE OF THE GREATEST THAT HAVE COME OUT THIS YEAR. Never mind the great things that were done with Graduation. 808s is shear art! Lets start with "Say You Will"; this song is the sh*t! I first heard the Internet leak that was very choppy and very love quality, but I couldn't stop listening to it. After hearing some of the other tracks from the album I realized that something was so different about this one; Kanye was really singing! And when I say singing, I don't mean just singing, but he put it down. I could barely hear the autotune. Then we have "Welcome to Heartbreak". I honestly wasn't feeling this one too much until I heard it on the album. The lyrics really caught me. On this one he compares his life to that of his friends and comes to the conclusion that fame [with it's good side] has had a negative affect on his life. Everyone else is getting married and having kids, but all he has are possessions that have no significant meaning in his life. And how about "Robocop"! Everybody was saying how much the song sucked when the unmastered version hit the internet a few weeks ago, but I must say that it is one of my favorites. I bet a million-trillion dollars that from now on guys are gonna be calling their overbearing, snooping girlfriends Robocops. On to "Coldest Winter", which has been my sh*t from day one. I promise I have listened to this song several hundred time. I had it on repeat for several days in my iPod. Even though he samples some lyrics and the melody from Tears for Fears' "Memories Fade", this song is genius. And lastly there is "Pinocchio Story", a live freestyle done at Kanye's Glow in the Dark show. What a great analogy; "I just want to be a real boy." Who else can think of that off the top of their head and make a six minute freestyle in from of thousands of people? After hearing the album one of my friends told me that Kanye fell off-- I nearly choked on my own spit. This album is genius. This man has continued to challenge the stereotype of what a hip-hop artist should be. Lets not forget the fact that he did record the entire album in just three weeks! I hereby dub 808's & Heartbreak a masterpiece. Go but it!

These are Dope

Even though my skating days are pretty much done, I can still respect the art that was done for Black Label's "20 Year Of The Elephant” Artist Decks. Participating artists included Todd Bartrud, Jeremy Fish, Natas, FOS and Sheppard Fairy. The artist deck series is now available at Stil Laden.

I Fixed It

After a whole week of messing with my template I finally figured out the problem. I had a jacked up code for the Solange video post lol. I feel stupid.....

Purple Sticky Salvia

I don't even know how to begin to advertise this product. This sh*t has to be the weirdest, most trippy thing I have ever tried in my life. I'm not at all into drugs or anything, but I smoked this last night with some friends and completely tripped out for like five solid minutes. This sh*t was crazy. You're suppose to only take two hits and hold it in for 30 seconds each, but for some reason it took four hits for me. After the fourth my homeboy asked me if I was ok, and I said yes, because honestly I was. Then I fell back in the chair and that's when the trippy stuff started to happen. I was being carried in a bucket by a flying yellow cat down a purple wormhole, and I couldn't stop laughing. The crazy thing was that I could only see it when I closed my eyes. Five minutes later I'm on the floor under the coffee table laughing and screaming at the same time lol. Salvia is unique in that it is the only naturally occurring substance known to induce a visionary state. It can be chewed, smoked, or taken as a tincture to produce experiences ranging from uncontrollable laughter to much more intense and profoundly altered states. The duration of effects is much shorter than that of other, more well-known psychedelics; the effects of smoked salvia typically last for only a few minutes. The most commonly reported after-effects include an increased feeling of insight, an improved mood, a sense of calmness, and an increased sense of connection with nature. Salvia is not generally understood to be toxic or addictive. The worst thing about this stuff is that it hits the back of your throat like hell! The best thing about is that's its 100% legal! Click here and thank me later.

O'neal McKnight "Check Your Coat"

This Just Might be my Sh*T

Technical Difficulties....

I have no idea whats going on, but my blog seems to be all jacked up in Windows. However, it looks fine on a Mac. Please bear with me as I try to fix the problem.

The AMAs: My Top Three

First, I must say the most enjoyable part of the award show was Beyonce pulling her ponytail.....[*drools]. Other than that, Kanye killed it. I didn't particularly care for his first acceptance speech [too wordy], but did anyone check his jacket? The whole time I was looking at it like, damn, where can I get one of those? And then when he turned around in his performance I knew i couldn't have it yet lol.

This rendition sounded like a Japanese folk song. I can dig it.

Then we have the finale; Alecia Keys killed it as well!

Who knew Queen Latifa still was on top of her rap game. Though she had mic problems her lyrics were tight. And then Cathleen Battle [the opera singer] put that freshness on it. How about them apples?!..... Oh but wait.... Chris Brown won Artist of the Year??????! That was some bull; and Mariah Carey is now bigger than Elvis????? I don't know about those two, but the rest of the show was straight.

Solange "T.O.N.Y."

On the real, real, REAL, Solange's album is way better than the new Beyonce!

In the Studio with Kid Cudi [Welcome to Heartbreak]

Oh Hell to the Naw [I'm Seriously Mad]

A purported message from al Qaeda’s deputy leader posted on Islamist Web sites on Wednesday told President-elect Barack Obama that “a heavy legacy of failure and crimes awaits you.” Ayman al-Zawahiri, al Qaeda’s No. 2, castigated Obama, saying “in you and in Colin Powell, (Condoleezza) Rice and your likes, the words of Malcolm X (may Allah have mercy on him) concerning ‘House Negroes’ are confirmed.”
Who the f*ck does this guy think he is???! These are straight up fighting words that will not be tolerated! Ok, ok, ok, Condi might be a house negro [*snickers], but to call out Colin Powell and Obama...... Oh hell no! I knew some terrorist would test Obama, but to just blaitantly send a threat such as this racist comment above was unexpected. I have no more words.

Rihanna "ft." Justin Timberlake "Rehab"

This makes how many videos from the album????